Monday, July 21, 2008

Today In History: The Germans are coming!

On this date in 1918, the Germany attacked America!

Well, the Kriegsmarine attacked Massachusetts.

Actually, one U-Boat shelled and sunk a tug off the town of Orleans on Cape Cod, and took a few potshots at the surrounding environs for good measure. Some U.S. Navy seaplanes showed up, some bombs were dropped, the sub gave it up for a bad idea and slunk off to do more normal U-Boaty-type things such as torpedo merchantmen, and everybody involved professionally in the matter seemed a little embarrassed about the whole incident.

Of course for quite some time afterward, every trick of light, loud noise, or low-flying seagull along the east coast was reported as a Jerry submarine.

Incidentally, the U-Boat attack on Orleans was the first time American soil had been fired upon by foreign troops since the War of 1812.

10 comments:

Jeff the Baptist said...

Pancho Villa doesn't count as foreign troops?

Anonymous said...

"Of course for quite some time afterward, every trick of light, loud noise, or low-flying seagull along the east coast was reported as a Jerry submarine."


They didn't redeem themselves with that Lite-Brite ditherfest, that's for damn sure.

Tam said...

"Pancho Villa doesn't count as foreign troops?"

Technically he was still an independent contractor at the time.

Mattexian said...

Technically he was still an independent contractor at the time.

You mean kinda like the ones down there now?

Anonymous said...

Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor?

Kevin said...

It wasn't even over when the Japanese dropped The Bomb on Pearl Harbor

http://www.weeklystandard.com/weblogs/TWSFP/2008/07/obama_ignorance_watch_1.asp

"Throughout our history, America’s confronted constantly evolving danger, from the oppression of an empire, to the lawlessness of the frontier, from the bomb that fell on Pearl Harbor, to the threat of nuclear annihilation. Americans have adapted to the threats posed by an ever-changing world." B H. Obama, (Who was Born in Hawaii)

Fenris said...

I'm still amused that I'm in a state that was successfully bombed by the Japanese and isn't Hawaii.

Blasted balloon bombs.

staghounds said...

Give him a break. It's not as though he remembers where he was when he heard the news...

Anonymous said...

For a fascinating read about some Uboat ops off the east coast during WWII, try Shadow Divers by Robert Kurson.

dc

Anonymous said...

If they did it today, "Spend it all" Deval Patrick would probably surrender.